LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Thursday

Nov 29, 2012 at 2:00 AM

My wife got a call recently, and it seems that two of our good friends who live on very fixed incomes were out Christmas shopping enduring the crowds and trying to give their loved ones some extra cheer this year, when they were robbed.

My wife got a call recently, and it seems that two of our good friends who live on very fixed incomes were out Christmas shopping enduring the crowds and trying to give their loved ones some extra cheer this year, when they were robbed.

While shopping at Black Bird, they parked down the street since the lot was full, and when they returned they found all of the shopping bags they had purchased earlier at other stores had been stolen.

This letter isn't to ask for donations or to try to bring shame to those who broke into the car. What I am asking is that people would simply pray for these two people whose names you don't even know. Pray that this act of imperfection by a part of mankind will not dampen the season that focuses on the only perfect one who came to forgive the imperfections of us all, the thieves in this story included.

God gives us the gifts of the spirit and he doesn't mind when we re-gift what he has given to us. Nobody can steal what is freely given. — James Walker, Anchorage, Alaska

In 1965, a commercial television set provider told the American people that if they did not accept the "community antenna concept" that warring corporations would control what they could watch and how much money they would have to pay to watch anything.

That time has come.

The phony "no contract" between DirecTV and the Pac-12 Networks is just what that man was talking about.

Oregonians, you are being screwed into the ground! Start your own community antenna system now! Organize, or be controlled by "them!" — Ed Scanlin, Medford

The union members didn't ask for increased pay or benefits. In fact, they had already suffered layoffs and pay cuts. The company also stopped making payment to their pension fund more than a year ago. A worker with 14 years at Hostess noted: "I made $48,000 in 2005, and $34,000 last year. I would make $25,000 in five years if I took their offer."

During the same period management received increases in pay and bonuses. One CEO received a 300 percent increase in his compensation package. Instead of investing in the company, management and the private equity companies took the cash and loaded Hostess with debt.

Hostess failed because of gross mismanagement and the greed of vulture capitalists. The union is innocent. — Eric Kees, Medford

I was charged a $5 late fee on my phone bill. I always paid on time and in full. In checking my checkbook, it was written and sent on Oct. 18, not due until the 27th.

When calling CenturyLink, the representative said it was some problem in the office. He finally said he would refund the $5 and it would be on my next bill.

One of the questions he asked was if I would recommend CenturyLink to my friends. I said I would wait until after my next bill to see if my $5 was refunded. — L. Hanson, Medford